The Hartford Wolf Pack head into their longest road swing of the season with a split in hand and a fresh batch of storylines to sort through.
After taking care of Providence on Friday and falling in a late reversal at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Saturday, Hartford now begins an eight-game trip with games two, three and four all coming this week. It’s also the club’s first visit to Canada this season.
The weekend started the right way. On Oct. 23 against the Providence Bruins, the Wolf Pack snapped a five-game skid and picked up their first home win of the season with a 2-0 victory. James Reimer was the difference, stopping 35 shots to earn a shutout in his Wolf Pack debut.
Hartford broke through early in the third period when Liam Greentree finished off a power-play setup from Glenn Gawdin just 57 seconds into the frame. It was Greentree’s fourth goal of the season.
Carey Terrance sealed it with an empty-net goal at 19:18, and the result gave the Wolf Pack their second straight 2-0 win over Providence. They also blanked the Bruins on Oct. 9 in Providence.
The next night in Wilkes-Barre, Hartford built a lead and carried it deep into the third, but the Penguins found life late. Gawdin opened the scoring 4:50 into the second period off a pass from Nathan Aspinall, picking up his second goal of the season.
The third period changed everything. Finn Harding tied it at 10:27, Tristan Broz put Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in front at 14:34, and with Harrison Bruinicke in the box for hooking at 17:12, Hartford pressed with the extra attacker. The Wolf Pack cashed in when Juuso Pärssinen scored his second of the year from Justin Dowling and Greentree to make it even again.
But the night still slipped away. Owen Pickering hammered home the winner from the left-wing circle at 18:40, giving the Penguins a 3-2 victory. It was Pickering’s second goal against Hartford in three games this season.
The trip now moves into a Thursday stop in Hamilton for the first meeting between the Wolf Pack and the Hammers in the Steel City. A year ago, when the Hammers were the Bridgeport Islanders, the teams met 12 times, with Bridgeport going 8-4-0-0 and Hartford finishing 4-8-0-0 in the series.
It also marks Hartford’s first visit to Hamilton since Feb. 11, 2011, when the Connecticut Whale beat the Hamilton Bulldogs 3-2 behind Devin DiDiomete’s game-winner at 18:47 of the third period.
From there, the Wolf Pack head to Belleville on Friday for their lone trip there this season and the first of two meetings overall. Last season, the home team won both matchups.
Belleville edged Hartford 2-1 on Nov. 8 when Philippe Daoust scored a shorthanded winner at 19:55 of the third period. The Wolf Pack answered back with a 4-0 shutout at PeoplesBank Arena on Feb. 21, with Brandon Scanlin scoring 6:08 into the game and Spencer Martin turning aside 20 shots for the blanking.
Hartford’s last win in Belleville came on Mar. 24, 2024, when Alex Belzile scored twice and Olof Lindbom made 37 saves.
Sunday brings the first of 12 meetings this season with Springfield in the ‘I-91 Rivalry’ presented by Braman Pest. The Wolf Pack took six of 10 games from the Thunderbirds a season ago, going 6-4-0-0, while Springfield collected points in five of the 10 matchups and finished 4-5-1-0.
There are also a few roster notes shaping the week. On Tuesday, Hartford loaned forward Caige Sterzer to the ECHL’s Worcester Railers.
The same day, the club named defenseman Marc Del Gaizo the 16 th captain in franchise history. Forwards Anton Blidh, Justin Dowling, and Glenn Gawdin will wear the ‘A’ on a rotating basis this season.
Reimer’s weekend debut carried some historic weight, too. On Oct. 23, he became the oldest goaltender to start a game in the AHL since Manny Legace with the Springfield Thunderbirds on Apr.
14, 2012. He also became the oldest goaltender to record a shutout in the league since Wade Flaherty on Mar. 13, 2008, when Flaherty was with the Rockford IceHogs.
Another notable addition came Sunday, when the parent New York Rangers assigned defenseman Matthew Robertson to Hartford. Robertson ranks tenth all-time in Wolf Pack games played with 256.
The Rangers also signed Reimer to a one-year contract for the remainder of the 2026-27 season and assigned Robertson and goaltender Spencer Martin to the Wolf Pack. Reimer made his Rangers debut on Oct. 26 against the Los Angeles Kings.
All three games this weekend will be available on AHLTV on FloHockey. Alex Thomas will handle the call Thursday and Friday from Hamilton and Belleville, with ‘Wolf Pack Pregame’ starting at 6:45 p.m. and puck drop set for 7:00 p.m. both nights.
Fans can also listen on Mixlr those two evenings. Ryan Smith will have the call for Sunday’s game on AHLTV on FloHockey.
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